Subject in Focus – Leveling Up: Game Design at Riverside High
Over the past Term, students in Riverside High School’s Making Computer Games option class have been diving into the exciting world of game development. Meeting once a week, these budding designers have seen the foundations of game design through Microsoft MakeCode Arcade; a beginner-friendly platform that blends creativity with coding.
Students have been working through interactive tutorials that guide them step-by-step in building classic arcade-style games. These tutorials introduced key programming concepts such as loops, conditionals, and event handling, all within a visual block-based coding environment.
But the real magic happened when students began customizing their games. They designed their own sprites, the characters and objects in their games, using pixel art tools, and added personal twists to the gameplay. From quirky characters to unexpected power-ups and imaginative level designs, each game became a unique expression of its creator’s vision.
As the class wraps up its MakeCode phase, students are now preparing to level up their skills with GDevelop, a more advanced game development platform. GDevelop allows for drag-and-drop logic and visual scripting, enabling students to build more complex games with richer graphics, sound, and interactivity. It also supports publishing games to multiple platforms, giving students a taste of professional game development. In the coming weeks, they’ll begin planning their projects in GDevelop, storyboarding ideas, creating custom assets, and learning how to structure game logic in a more advanced environment.
Making Computer Games not only offers a glimpse into real-world software development but also enhances student’s digital literacy and problem-solving abilities. Riverside High School is proud to nurture these future innovators and game designers. We can’t wait to see what they create next!
Kylie Jago
